Ghent UMC is joining our neighbors from Ohef Sholom Temple to provide meals and monitoring for NEST January 20-27. Ghent UMC's dates are Friday afternoon through Saturday morning, Jan. 22-23.

Norfolk Emergency Shelter Team (NEST) is a coalition of faith organizations providing warm, safe shelters for homeless adults during winter months, and helping to connect them with resources and support systems. This year, the city projects that there are 40 people in our area without housing. It was decided by the leadership of NEST, Norfolk Health Department, and the Community Services Board to have one location this year at at First Presbyterian Church (820 Colonial Ave) because the COVID safety set-up is so involved!

To learn more about the volunteer opportunities and to sign up, click here! If you wish to volunteer another day, please contact the church office and we will connect you with the Temple.
In order to make the shelter safe for all guests and volunteers:
  1. The city has placed vinyl screens at the check-in locations.
  2. Volunteers will be asked screening questions, have their temperatures checked, and required to wear masks at all times, including in the parking lot. Volunteers will be given gloves and face shields (if desired).
  3. Guests will also be asked screening questions, have their temperatures checked, and required to wear masks (including in the parking lot) except when eating. Any guest with a potential infection will be transported to the hospital for testing and will not be permitted to enter the building.
  4. Volunteers will prepare and package the meals ahead of time, then serve them to each guest in their socially distanced space. (We plan to use the most Ecofriendly paper supplies possible- no styrofoam!)
  5. Sleeping mats will be distanced from each other and separated physically by clear plastic barriers.
  6. First Presbyterian Church is equipped with bi-polar ionization devices in the heating/cooling system. This equipment is extremely effective in neutralizing and removing particles from the air, including bacteria and viruses.
  7. Each morning the church will sanitize all spaces with electrostatic backpack chemical sprayers.
  8. Multiple hand sanitizing stations will be available throughout the shelter area.
  9. The guests will use designated portable restrooms to allow for easy sanitizing between each use. 

All volunteers must be masked, and according to VA UMC guidelines, all volunteers:
1. Must NOT have Covid-19, or 2 or more Covid-19 symptoms, in the previous 14 days.
2. Must NOT have exposure or possible exposure to anyone with Covid-19, or 2 or more Covid-19 symptoms, in the previous 14 days.
3. Must notify Pastor Melody Tanner and seek medical attention if they develop Covid-19 or 2 or more Covid-19 symptoms after volunteering.
For more information, please contact Faye Joseph, our NEST coordinator, or the church office.
Ghent United Methodist Church | Website